The Bill for the Free Provision of Period Products Passed by the Northern Irish Assembly

Rachel Curry

In a huge win for period poverty campaigners, March 24 saw a Bill passed by the Northern Irish Assembly that guarantees free and easily accessible period products in all schools, colleges, and public buildings in Northern Ireland. 

The Bill makes Northern Ireland only the second country in the world to offer period products freely to all, after a similar ruling in Scotland in 2020. The legislation is also particularly welcome here, as until now Northern Ireland has been the only area in the UK without a permanent scheme in place to tackle period poverty.

Period poverty refers to the difficulties many face when trying to access period products, simply from not being able to afford them. 

A survey conducted by Plan International found that one in ten young women aged between 14 and 21 in the UK cannot afford to buy sanitary products, and one in seven struggle to afford them – an issue that has only been worsened by the pandemic. 

Foodbanks were used by 2.5 million people in the UK over 2020/21, and though period products can look cheap on supermarket shelves, the reality is that if people cannot afford food, they will not be able to afford period products either.

Even for those that can afford them, it can still sometimes be a struggle to get access to them. A survey conducted by the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) at the end of 2021 found that over a quarter of pupils in Northern Ireland who have a period have had difficulty accessing period products, rising to 60 percent of those in further education. Of these, one in five have missed classes due to not having sufficient period products.

The Homeless Period Belfast is an organisation that works to get care-packs containing sanitary products to people who need them across the city. It has been campaigning tirelessly for a change in the law surrounding period products as, in their own words, “menstruation matters”. 

Presenting to the NI Assembly in December 2021, its founder, Katrina McDonnell, argued that while the introduction of the Bill would require funding, “quite simply you can’t put a cost on healthcare needs.”

“People who have periods don’t decide to have periods… there are people out there [who have] probably had to use toilet roll at some point because of a lack of access to period products in a public toilet.” She argued that access to period products is “a real human rights issue”.

Pat Catney, SDLP MLA for Lagan Valley has been a significant ally of this legislation. It was Catney who first introduced the Bill for consideration back in October 2021. On his decision to support the legislation Catney said, “for too long we have been failing our women and girls on this issue. These products are not luxuries, they are essentials and they cost a significant amount of money. That people are forced to go without them because they cannot afford them is utterly disgraceful.”

However, getting the Bill passed has been a long and difficult process. There were worries in January that the legislation would be shelved after health minister Robin Swann refused to finance the Bill. While he was supportive of the Bill, he argued that it was outside the remit of the Department of Health alone. The Bill was eventually taken up by communities minister Deirdre Hargey. Like those at The Homeless Period Belfast, she argues that period products should be freely available for all in exactly the same way as toilet roll.

In the end, the Bill was quickly passed by an oral vote, and will now proceed to receive Royal Assent, a formality that will allow it to become an Act in law over the next few months. 

In an emotional speech inside Stormont, Catney remarked, “ I am proud beyond words of everything we’ve achieved. “

“This is what this place should be doing. This is what legislators are down here to do. This will make a difference. For my two-year-old granddaughter and for every young woman coming forward here now... It’s a big day.”

Ciara Ferguson, MLA for Foyle, called the Bill “a good-news story [especially for] the 1 in 10 of those who said that they were unable to afford period products at some time in their life.”

She also praised it for its inclusivity, in the way it ensures “that women, girls and all those who menstruate have access to period products.”

At the same time, she noted that there is more to do in order to ensure that “hard-to-reach groups such as homeless people, the Travelling community, asylum seekers and refugees [and those] in our rural communities” have sufficient access to period products.

When asked for her thoughts on the success of the Bill, Katrina McDonnell said that “to say I am elated is an absolute understatement,”

Rachel Curry is a Scoop reporter and English student at Queen’s University Belfast.